Atlanta developer Integral Group LLC has inked a deal to build a 108-unit affordable-housing rental development near Denver Union Station, in a sea of costlier apartments, amid some of the most expensive office space in Colorado, and on land that draws some of the highest prices per acre in metro Denver.

Integral, which specializes in urban residential developments, plans to build the workforce housing development at 18th Street and Chestnut Place, north of Union Station. It reached the development deal with the City of Denver, the Colorado Housing Finance Authority and the hotel-transit complex's master developer.

East West Partners with Crescent Real Estate Equities, doing business as Union Center LLC, sold the 1-acre site at 1975 18th St. to Integral, doing business as Chestnut & 18th L.P, for $3.25 million, according to Denver Assessor records.

East West is part of a joint venture with Continuum Partners LLC of Denver called the Union Station Neighborhood Co. (USNC), which is the master developer for the 19.5-acre site around Denver Union Station.

The city chipped in a $2.5 million loan that included a covenant requiring that the complex remain affordable housing for 60 years, and a $950,000 short-term loan with funds from the city’s Inclusionary Housing Fund (where developers of for-sale housing must either provide affordable units or pay cash in lieu of).

CHFA arranged for $1.25 million in tax credits for the $26.58 million project.

Under the deal with the city, thirty-four units at the complex will be set aside for households with income at, or below, 50 percent of the area median income (AMI), and 34 more for those with income less than 60 percent of the AMI.

“Everyone’s a hero in this one,” said Diane Barrett, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock’s chief projects officer, who added that Hancock personally worked for almost a year to ensure the city’s Office of Economic Development could make it happen.

“The city was confident that the only way this would happen was with our participation,” said Councilwoman Robin Kniech, who served on the Denver Union Station Project Authority from 2010 to 2011. She brought the project idea to Hancock after East West officials said they were willing to negotiate.

“We could have sold it for more, certainly,” said Amy Cara, partner with East West. “But we talked with Crescent about how important it was to have this there and our conclusion was that the price made us happy.”

No one expected the boom of apartment development in and around the redevelopment site to happen as quickly as it did, Cara said. And with the area’s popularity with multifamily developers, land prices have soared in recent years.

“Our conversations have always been how to make this an area for everyone,” Cara said. “But it was becoming difficult because it didn’t seem like any developer was going to do affordable housing because technically, they were not required to do so.”

Plans for the four-story development include one- and two-bedroom units, 146 parking spaces, a community room, fitness center and business center.

The site was one of the last remaining parcels in East West’s long-time partnership with Crescent, which began with the purchase of the land that is now Riverfront Park more than 10 years ago.

“Integral has a strong commitment to embracing mixed income communities across the country and Denver’s Union Station neighborhood creates the perfect environment for a sustainable and healthy community that is connected to jobs, has access to transit and provides integrated economic options for families,” said Integral development chairman and CEO Egbert Perry.

“The mixed-income housing made possible by East West Partners’ sale of this land completes the last missing piece at Denver Union Station – we had a half billion dollars in public investment in transit, a half billion dollars of private investment, and now we have a diversity of incomes able to access these amenities,” said Kniech.

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